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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25414552">In A Heartbeat</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justspookythingz/pseuds/Justspookythingz'>Justspookythingz</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Medical, Dr. Shane Madej, M/M, Ryan Bergara RN, featuring:, outbreak scenario</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 04:21:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>12,358</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25414552</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justspookythingz/pseuds/Justspookythingz</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>**ON HIATUS**</p><p>Ryan had spent the better part of the last ten minutes listing off theories, starting with ebola, escalating to bubonic plague, until— “It’s the zombie apocalypse. That has to be it, did you see the way—“</p><p>“Christ, Bergara, calm down,” Shane finally interjected, standing to put a hand on Ryan’s shoulder, halting his manic pacing. “We still don’t know if the dude even had something contagious. Like, for all we know, he just had undiagnosed hemophilia, or—“</p><p>“Hemophilia. Really. That’s what you’re going with. Shane, the man hasn’t walked in five years, like, you can’t tell me that’s not related??”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ryan Bergara/Shane Madej</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>67</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I'm a nurse, so this medical AU was inevitable. But it's also BFU fic, so things are gonna get creepy :)</p><p>Title comes from "In the House, In a Heartbeat" by John Murphy. This fic is strongly inspired by 28 Days Later and House.</p><p>Leave me some love, spooky babes &lt;3</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"> Ryan cracked open a red bull, wincing slightly at the sound. Devon lifted her head from the counter in front of her, squinting at him in disbelief. “Ryan, it’s 4 am, how are you drinking that now? Aren’t you back tonight?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grimaced, burping quietly after a long chug. “Yeah, it’s night one of three for me…and dude, I dunno, my caffeine tolerance is through the roof.” Ryan shrugged, chugging more red bull for a long moment. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Devon just rolled her eyes before standing up with a groan. She stretched for a long moment before slinging her stethoscope around her neck, heading for the entrance to the nurse’s station. “I’m gonna go make sure my team’s still alive,” she called over her shoulder to Ryan. Ryan just nodded in response before finishing off his red bull. Just as he set his can down, an alarm rang out, red lights flashing overhead. Ryan stumbled to his feet as the HUC called out “Bed exit 23.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan swore before he took off running down the hall. “Dorothy, where you going?” Ryan called loudly as he bustled into the room. His elderly patient was sticking her legs insistently over the bed railing, trying valiantly to escape. Ryan huffed out a breath as he gently lifted her legs back into bed.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I need to find my Jimmy, I don’t know where he’s got to!” The tiny old lady gazed up at Ryan earnestly.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan gave her a tired smile. “Dorothy, you’re in the hospital—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Dorothy gasped in surprise. “Oh, am I?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan put a hand on her shoulder, still smiling. “Yes, dear, you’re at UCSF Medical Center. It’s about 4 am—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Oh, gosh!” Dorothy sounded appalled.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan tamped down on laughter. “Yes, it’s very early, you should try to get some more sleep.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Dorothy nodded up at him before closing her eyes and snuggling back into bed. Ryan sighed, leaving the door open as he left. It was easily the 20th time he’d had this conversation with her. As he walked down the hall towards the nurse’s station, he groaned as his phone rang. He looked at the screen before answering, recognizing the number from the telemetry monitoring station.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“7NT, this is Ryan.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hi, Ryan, this is Talia from tele. I’m calling because room 22 is having some pretty significant ST-elevation.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan felt his heart rate pick up as he strode quickly to the tele monitors in the nurse’s station. “Ok, thanks, I’ll look into it.” He absently hung up the phone, quickly pulling up the event strip for room 22. Ryan swore as he looked at it. While Ryan sucked at reading tele, he could recognize what was basically a textbook STEMI. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He jogged the couple steps to his computer, quickly clicking through the chart to release an EKG before looking at the attending physician. He swore again, recognizing the name of a teaching team physician. While he knew he would get a quick response from the teaching team residents, he preferred dealing with the more experienced hospitalists. He started paging the on-call number for the teaching team with his phone as he jogged down the hallway towards room 22, grabbing a vitals cart as he went. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey, Ry, you okay?” TJ called after him, as Ryan ran past.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Yeah, I think 22’s having a STEMI,” Ryan called over his shoulder. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’ll watch your other people, just lemme know if you need help.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Thanks, Teej,” Ryan called before heading into 22. The guy looked awful. He was still asleep, but he was pale and sweaty, his face twisted into a grimace. Ryan woke him up, and the guy immediately started moaning weakly, clutching at his chest. “Mr. Roberts, are you having chest pain? Are you feeling short of breath?” The patient just nodded, looking terribly anxious, still sweating profusely. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan took a deep breath, forcing his voice level and calm. “I’m going to grab a set of vitals and touch base with the doctor because your heart monitor is reading a little funny. We’ll get a quick 12-lead EKG to get a better look at your heart, and we might need to draw some labs…” Ryan said all this as he quickly hooked up the vitals cart and logged into the computer. As soon as he finished taking vitals, the EKG tech was there, quickly hooking up the patient. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan sighed, stepping into the hallway for a moment, leaning against the wall to take some deep, calming breaths. Before he was ready, the EKG tech was there, looking grim as he handed Ryan the results. “It’s a STEMI,” the tech said shortly before striding off. Ryan felt his palms sweating, adrenaline quickly clearing out any lingering exhaustion. Before he could re-enter the room, his phone was ringing. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“7NT, this is Ryan.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey, this is Shane with family medicine, I was paged?” The voice was male and thin with exhaustion.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Yeah, I was paging about room 22, George Roberts? Are you familiar at all?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Not really, what’s going on?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Uh,” Ryan winced and cleared his throat as his voice cracked. “I think this dude’s having a STEMI?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“…you <em>think—</em>“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Okay,” Ryan interjected, annoyed. “He is having a STEMI. He looks like shit. What do you want me to do?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Fuck,” Shane swore quietly before immediately apologizing. “Sorry, unprofessional…I’m on my way there, I’m just over on 3NW, I should be there in 5…is cardiology on for this guy?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan dove into the room, quickly clicking through the chart. “Yeah, they’re on.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Page them, and then page the Cath lab. Also, get a stat troponin.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What’s your last name?” Ryan asked quickly, sensing that the guy was about to hang up.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Madej, m-a-d-e-j,” Shane spelled quickly. “I’ll see you soon.” He hung up.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan took a shaky breath, quickly throwing in the order before pulling up the answering service number for the on-call cardiologist. TJ poked his head in the room. “Everything okay? Need me to do anything?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Can you page the Cath lab? Oh, and, uhh…” Ryan paused, watching the pulse oximeter on the vitals cart creep down…96…94…91. Ryan cleared his throat nervously. “Can you grab a non-rebreather?” TJ nodded in response before taking off at a run. Ryan turned back to Mr. Roberts, who looked decidedly worse, gasping weakly for breath. Ryan dove for the bed, quickly raising the head. “Take some nice, slow, deep breaths for me, in through the nose, out through pursed lips…” Ryan demonstrated, turning as the door swung open again. TJ walked in, tossing a mask and tubing at Ryan, who deftly caught it and quickly cranked on the oxygen, sliding the mask over the man’s face.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ ducked out of the room as his phone rang, and a moment later, a tall, gangly resident with mussed-up brown hair strode in. “Hey, how’s he doing?” Shane ran a hand through his hair nervously, gazing at the patient.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan stared at Shane for a moment before replying, “Not great…we’re working on getting the Cath lab on board, and I’m waiting on cardiology to page back. He’s desatting pretty quick, I’ve already got him on 8 liters…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane walked in closer to the patient, glancing at the pulse ox reading. “Mr. Roberts? Can you hear me?” Mr. Roberts didn’t respond. Shane cleared his throat and reached out to rub the man’s sternum, hard. Nothing. “Ryan, can you call a stat team on this guy? I need to call my attending.” Shane strode out, Ryan grimacing as he pulled out his phone.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p3">
  <span class="s1">——————</span>
</p><p class="p4"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">What felt like hours later, Ryan collapsed into a chair in the nurse’s station. His coworkers were already bustling about, passing morning medications. Ryan had finally gotten the patient transferred to the Cath lab, accompanied by two of the stat call nurses, and his exhaustion was catching up with him. Ryan pressed his face into the counter in front of him, closing his eyes.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Someone sat down next to him, heavily. Ryan jumped slightly before squinting over at Shane. Shane gave him a lazy grin. “That was fun,” he commented, leaning back in his chair.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grimaced. “It probably wasn’t super fun for Mr. Roberts.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted. “Listen, people have STEMIs all the time…” Ryan rolled his eyes. “You did a good job handling that.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan shrugged, closing his eyes again. “Thanks, I guess?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’ll see you around, little guy…” And Shane was gone.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan gave himself five minutes to decompress before heaving himself to his feet, groaning. He still had two hours left and twelve antibiotics to hang. Another bed alarm went off, and Ryan was running.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p3">
  <span class="s1">——————</span>
</p><p class="p4"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan started work the next night determined to have a better shift. While he was satisfied with how he had handled things that morning, he was firmly decided that he deserved a break.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The night started smoothly. He had most of his patients back, and he finished his med passes in less than an hour. He answered a couple of bed alarms, brought Dorothy some ice cream, and was overall feeling pretty good about his shift. Which is precisely when everything went to shit.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It started with a bed alarm. “Bed exit 20.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan ran to get it, not too worried because 20 was paraplegic. Ryan stopped short when he entered, wondering for a moment if he had the wrong room. The patient was standing next to the bed, facing the window, seemingly unperturbed by the blaring alarm. Ryan stared. The patient was <em>standing.</em></span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Mr. Riley?” Ryan asked tentatively. No response. “Mr. Riley, can you hear me? Can you get back in bed for me?” Ryan took a couple of steps closer, and Mr. Riley turned…Ryan gasped. Blood was dripping slowly from Mr. Riley’s eyes, which gazed blankly at Ryan. “Mr. Riley, can you hear me? Are you okay?” Ryan made an aborted move to step closer, faltering as Mr. Riley’s mouth fell open in a groan. Ryan took a deep, shaking breath, steeling himself. “Okay, it’s time to go back to bed, Mr. Riley.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan firmly steered the man back into bed, heaving his bony legs up and covering him firmly with a blanket. After resetting the bed alarm, Ryan pulled out his penlight, shining it into each of Mr. Riley’s eyes. There was no obvious source of bleeding, and Mr. Riley’s pupils were sluggish to react.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After staring dumbly at Mr. Riley, who lay motionless, Ryan shook his head and took off for the nurse’s station. “Okayyyy, paging the doctor, like, right now,” he muttered as he threw himself into a chair, pulling open the chart— teaching team, <em>of course.</em></span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After paging the on-call number to his phone, Ryan leaned back for a moment, taking long swigs of coffee. Ryan jumped slightly at the shrill tone of his phone ringing and answered quickly, “Ryan, 7NT.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey, Ryan, it’s Shane with family medicine, what’s up?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan cleared his throat, trying to tamp down on nervousness. “Okay, so, like, this is super weird, but the dude in bed 20, Jeremy Riley? He just stood up?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Okay, and this is super weird because…?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“He’s been paralyzed from the waist down since he was diagnosed with CIDP 5 years ago. Oh, also, he was crying blood—"<br/>
</span>
</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“He was crying <em>blood</em>?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I told you it was super weird. Like, his vitals are good, labs are whatever, but he just escaped from bed and was standing there like a zombie with blood dripping from his goddamn eyes.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane was silent for a long moment before heaving an audible sigh and continuing, “Uhhhh, okay, so, uh…is he on any blood thinners?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Just heparin—“</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/>
<br/>
“Discontinue it.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Dude, I don’t think the heparin is making him cry blood, like his platelets are fine…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Another moment of silence. “You said he’s been paralyzed? Like, totally paralyzed, like for real?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan snorted. “Yeah, when I said paralyzed, I meant ‘like, totally paralyzed, like for real.’” Ryan felt guilty for a moment for mocking the guy, but Shane just laughed in response.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Okay, okay, I get it. Look, I’ll come see the guy…what’s he even here for?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“A UTI."</span>
</p><p class="p1"><br/>
<br/>
“Okay, so probably not related…look, I’ll be there in 5, but, uh, why don’t you throw in a stat H&amp;H and consult neurology.”</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Will do. See you soon.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After throwing in the orders and calling lab to come draw the H&amp;H, Ryan walked back to room 20. Mr. Riley appeared to be sleeping, trails of blood drying darkly to his cheeks. His breath was rattling and wet and Ryan nervously listened with his stethoscope for a long moment. Distantly, he heard the muffled sound of someone talking. He pulled one ear out and turned to the door to see Shane standing there, looking exhausted.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“How’s he sound?” Shane asked as he slowly walked towards the bed.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan shrugged. “Not good.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane furrowed his brows, glancing at Ryan. “He satting okay?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lemme double-check, just a second…” Ryan jogged out of the room, returning with a vitals cart, quickly throwing a finger probe on: 100%</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Weird,” Shane muttered, gazing at the guy for a moment before leaning over to shake his shoulder. “Mr. Riley...?” Then again, louder. “Mr. Riley??” No response.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane glanced over his shoulder at Ryan, who just shrugged. Shane turned back and reached out to sternal rub the man, only to jump back as Mr. Riley jolted upright in bed. He drew in a deep, horrible, rattling breath, blood now dripping from the corners of his mouth, and Ryan instinctively grabbed Shane’s arm, yanking him back from the bed. Just in time, as Mr. Riley released a wet cough, misting blood in the air in front of him. He turned to face Ryan and Shane, and, just for a moment, Ryan thought he saw recognition and fear, some dawning terror just barely lighting up bloody eyes. And then, Mr. Riley threw up, retching violently as what seemed like gallons of blood poured out of his mouth. Then, he collapsed, motionless.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan and Shane were clutching each other’s arms, standing near the door, frozen in horror. They both seemed to remember themselves, Ryan diving to the wall to frantically pull on a pair of gloves, Shane pulling out his phone to call for help. Ryan scrambled at Mr. Riley’s neck, which was slick with blood, feeling for a pulse. Nothing. He dove for Mr. Riley’s crotch, yanking blankets down to dig his fingers into the femoral, already knowing what he was gonna find: Nothing.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I got no pulse,” Ryan called over his shoulder. Shane nodded, talking frantically to what was presumably his attending. Ryan grimaced at Shane’s lack of action, reaching over the bed to hit the code button. Alarms blared in the hallway, and Ryan heaved Mr. Riley onto his side, blood smearing on his bare arms. Ryan ignored it, throwing the plastic board onto the bed before throwing down the railing. He glanced at Shane who was still on the phone. “Big guy, I need you to count for me. And start recording.” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Sara, I gotta go help, but you need to get here like yesterday.” Shane hung up the phone, grabbing gloves and starting to count as Ryan started compressions. Time seemed to speed up as suddenly the room was full of dozens of people. A tiny doctor with a mass of curly hair pulled back into a ponytail was calmly giving directions as ICU nurses took over. Ryan relayed what had happened to one of the nurses, and again to the tiny doctor. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Finally, one of the nurses called out, “I’ve got a pulse!” And before Ryan could process what was happening, the bed was being wheeled down the hall to the elevator, towards the surgical ICU. Ryan stood in the destroyed room, gazing absently at the blood on the floor, the piles of bedding, the haphazardly opened code cart.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You should get cleaned up and stop by employee health,” the tiny doctor was standing a couple of feet from Ryan, looking pointedly at the blood smeared up his arms. “I’m Dr. Sara Rubin, by the way. I’m the attending for this Sasquatch.” She pointed over her shoulder towards Shane, who looked dazed.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan quirked a smile. “Nice to meet you. I’m Ryan. And yeahhh, I’m gonna get washed up, make sure someone’s watching my team, and go get checked out…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You too,” Sara looked pointedly at Shane who had blood smeared across his white coat. Shane grimaced in response, pulling off his coat to ditch it in the pile of linens.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As Ryan made for the tiny bathroom near the door, the hospital loudspeaker crackled to life, a calm voice announcing, “Attention. Medical emergency. Code 4. NorthWest Tower, 4th floor, Surgical ICU, hallway…” As the message began to repeat, Ryan looked at Dr. Rubin and Shane with a sinking feeling. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara took a deep breath. “I gotta go, that’s our guy. Madej, get checked out, and call me when you’re done.” With that, she was gone.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan continued into the bathroom, scrubbing his arms for several minutes until they were bright red and free of blood. Shane was hovering outside the door, and he silently switched places with Ryan to take his turn scrubbing his hands furiously. When he finished, he wandered into the hallway to see Ryan exiting the nurse’s station.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Okay, Teej is gonna watch my patients…do you have any idea where employee health is?” Ryan glanced up at Shane as they headed for the elevators.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted. “Dude, I’ve been here like a month, I dunno where anything is in this place.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan sighed as they stepped into the elevators. “Well, my friend Devon said she thinks it might be in the Murphy Building. Let’s head there, I guess?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane grimaced. “Ugh, I hate the Murphy Building.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Dude, right? Like, don’t get me wrong, I know the towers are outdated as hell, but everyone in Murphy is such an asshole…” Shane nodded in agreement as they headed through the silent hallways of the third floor. Ryan continued, “Anyways, what’s your deal?” He looked up at Shane expectantly, and it seemed to take Shane a moment to realize Ryan had asked a question.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What’s ‘my deal’?” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grinned. “Yeah, like how long do have left in residency, why’d you become a doctor, what do you do for fun?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane glanced down at Ryan. “Well, I have two years left, I became a doctor because I love blood and bones, and lately? I don’t have fun, I just work and sleep.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan looked incredulous. “You ‘love blood and bones’—“ Ryan put air quotes around this. “C’mon, dude, I was being serious.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane sighed. “Fine, I find this mortal plane terrifying and difficult, and I figured I might as well spend my life trying to make it a little less horrific. Also, job security…what about you? What’s your ‘deal’? Why the nurse thing?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan snorted. “Christ, you make your career choice sound grim…and I guess same reason for me, sort of? I decided I wanted to be a nurse when my brother Jake got real sick and had some bomb-ass nurses. And, like you said, job security.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane nodded, glancing down at Ryan as they waited for another set of elevators. “Lemme guess. For fun, you like sports and drinking.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan felt his face heat and crossed his arms defensively. “Fine, okay, so I like to play sports and I maybe set a few records at my college for drinking—“ Shane snorted. “But, like, I’m deeply layered, big guy. I also like crying over Disney movies and cooking with my mom.” Shane smirked, and Ryan just rolled his eyes, huffing.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You’re quite the enigma,” Shane commented, voice gently teasing.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Yeah, yeah,” Ryan smiled reluctantly. They finally spotted a small sign pointing down a hall towards employee health, and as they were approaching a counter with an old lady sitting behind it, the hospital speakers came to life.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Attention. Facility emergency. Quarantine. Please report to your team leaders. Do not leave your designated area. Please await further instruction.” The message began to repeat, and Ryan looked up at Shane, feeling suddenly cold as dread washed over him. Shane looked momentarily surprised, his expression quickly furrowing into deep concern.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Do you think…?” Ryan began tentatively, his voice high and strained.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I don’t know.” Shane cleared his throat, still gazing at Ryan. They both jumped as Shane’s phone began to ring. “It’s Sara,” he said quickly before answering. He turned his back to Ryan, making absent noises of agreement over the phone, finally ending with, “I will. You too, Sara.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He slowly turned back to face Ryan, looking slightly lost. “The CDC is on its way. The whole hospital is under quarantine until further notice. We’re supposed to isolate and wait for further instructions…that guy is dead, like he apparently went into hemorrhagic shock, was basically bleeding from every orifice…” Shane cleared his throat, still staring at Ryan.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan felt nauseous, and he took several shaky breaths, steeling himself. “Okay…okay…let’s go find somewhere to hole up.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>As usual, my goal is to post chapters weekly. But, knowing me, it'll probably be way more frequent :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey folks. This is a shorter one...still setting the stage for the oncoming horror :))</p><p>Come yell on Tumblr with me at crawlacrossthesaltflats</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan and Shane ended up in a negative pressure room in an abandoned ward, Shane sitting on the bed, gazing into space, as Ryan paced. Ryan had spent the better part of the last ten minutes listing off theories, starting with ebola, escalating through bubonic plague, until— “It’s the zombie apocalypse. That has to be it, did you see the way—“</span>
</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Christ, Bergara, calm down,” Shane finally interjected, standing to put a hand on Ryan’s shoulder, halting his manic pacing. “We still don’t know if the dude even had something contagious. Like, for all we know, he just had undiagnosed hemophilia, or—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hemophilia. Really. That’s what you’re going with. Shane, the man hasn’t walked in <em>five years, </em>like, you can’t tell me that’s not related??”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane sighed. “Look, there’s this concept in medicine where you’re not supposed to assume zebra when something looks like a horse—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Yeah, yeah,” Ryan rolled his eyes. “I know, Occam’s Razor, or whatever.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Exactly!” Shane gestured emphatically. “Rather than assuming that dude had some rare, horrific disease, it makes more sense that he just had a couple of undiagnosed medical issues that culminated into whatever the fuck we witnessed.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Okay, but, dude, in medicine, aren’t you supposed to assume that mysterious symptoms are related? Like, it’s more likely that someone has one weird disease than a combination of diseases.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You’ve been watching too much House,” Shane quirked a smile at Ryan. “We don’t necessarily assume that multiple symptoms come from one disease. Like, there are plenty of comorbid conditions out there…also, by the time most of our patients end up here, they’ve been ignoring symptoms for years, letting health problems pile up.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan was already shaking his head. “Madej, I <em>knew </em>that guy. He was a frequent flyer because he’s had all sorts of issues with CIDP and shit. He takes good care of himself, he’s even taking part in some clinical trial after the plasmapheresis failed. Like, he just got really unlucky.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Okay, but that’s one out of how many patients?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan rolled his eyes. “Yeah, you may have a point with the other people we see, but, like, this guy is the one who started mysteriously walking and bleeding out of every orifice.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane sighed, sitting heavily on the bed again. “Look, little guy, you can theorize as much as you want, but Ebola doesn’t move that fast and we’d have more people showing symptoms…” Shane began to tick off Ryan’s suggestions on his fingers, refuting each in turn. “The plague isn’t hemorrhagic and has other obvious symptoms…and I’m honestly not even gonna address the zombie thing. It’s more likely this dude was exposed to some sort of toxin or had a bunch of underlying issues.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan opened his mouth to retort when his phone rang. He answered quickly, fumbling and almost dropping it. “Hello…? Oh, Devon, thank god. Is everyone okay?” Ryan paused, listening. “Yeah, we’re okay…shut up, TJ…Alright, we’re still hunkered down for now, but call if anything changes…yeah, you guys too.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Any news?” Shane asked as Ryan hung up. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grimaced, shaking his head. “The CDC just got here, but they’re still setting up outside. TJ said he thinks the military is here too…I guess we’re just supposed to wait here?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane sighed. “Well, I’m gonna catch some sleep.” He promptly threw himself back onto the bed, sprawling out on his back and closing his eyes.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey, no fair!”<br/>
</span>
</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane quirked a smile, his eyes still closed. “Just curl your tiny, little body up in the recliner, you’ll be fine.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/>
<br/>
Ryan rolled his eyes, but he listened to Shane, curling up on the cushy, vinyl chair. Soon, they were both fast asleep.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p3">
  <span class="s1">——————</span>
</p><p class="p4"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan woke up to the sound of someone knocking on the door. He had no idea how long he’d been asleep, but sunlight was beaming brightly through the window directly into his eyes. Squinting, Ryan stumbled to his feet, grimacing as he realized his leg was asleep. Shane stirred on the bed, grumbling, as Ryan hobbled over to the door, shaking life back into his leg.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Who’s there?” Ryan’s voice cracked audibly and he cleared his throat.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m Dr. Harriet May, with the CDC. Please step back from the door, I’m coming in.” The voice was muffled, and Ryan backpedaled a couple of feet as the door swung open with the familiar rush of air. Ryan stared at the woman who was wearing a gigantic yellow hazmat suit. She stepped carefully into the room, her movements slow in the suit. Ryan glanced over his shoulder at the sound of Shane scrambling to his feet.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What’s going on?” Shane asked shortly.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m Harriet May, I’m the head of the regional CDC…were you two the ones who found Jeremy Riley?” Her voice was distant, muffled through layers of plastic and the whir of the PAPR. Ryan nodded silently in response, and Harriet continued, “Can you explain everything that happened? The more details you can provide, the better.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan launched into an explanation starting with the bed alarm and finishing with the SICU transfer. Harriet remained silent through the explanation. As Ryan trailed off, she sighed. “Okay. Thank you for your time, I need to go relay this to my team.” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She was turning to leave when Shane interjected, looking agitated. “That’s it? Seriously? We’ve been in this room for ten hours, what’s happening out there?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Even through the layers of clear plastic, Ryan could make out a frown on Harriet’s face. She considered Shane for a moment before responding. “We don’t know yet. The CDC was called in because Mr. Riley displayed several symptoms similar to those of quarantinable diseases, but there’s no cause for alarm at this—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“So if it was a toxin or something, why are they quarantining us?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Harriet heaved a breath at the interruption. “Because we don’t know that it was a toxin. Until we figure out what happened, we’re keeping the facility on lockdown. No one in or out.” Harriet made to leave again, turning back briefly to add, “We’ll have someone leave you some supplies to take samples from each other. And some food. Don’t leave this room.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When she was gone, Shane let out a frustrated noise, running a hand through his hair. Ryan walked over, concerned. “Hey, big guy, it’s gonna be okay.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/>
<br/>
Shane grimaced. “You don’t know that. They don’t have the CDC come in looking like that unless things are serious.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan swallowed, looking nervous momentarily before his expression cleared. “Alright. But until we know what’s happening, there’s no point in worrying.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane huffed out a breath in response, beginning to pace. Ryan watched him for a couple of minutes, concerned. Finally, he spoke up, “Shane. Stop.” Shane paused, looking at Ryan. “Look…let’s play a game or something.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane looked at Ryan like he was an idiot. “…’play a <em>game’</em>?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grinned. “Yup.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane stared at him for a moment longer before heaving a sigh. “Fine, what do you want to play?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p3">
  <span class="s1">——————</span>
</p><p class="p4"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">An entire day passed with little change. Ryan and Shane spent hours playing stupid games, starting with 20 questions and ending with a ridiculous hour of I Spy. Someone in a hazmat suit delivered a large quantity of non-perishable food, and Ryan and Shane took turns sleeping on the tiny hospital bed. Finally, as Shane and Ryan both resorted to pacing up and down the room, Harriet finally returned. She only entered to drop off needles, swabs, and test tubes, before leaving immediately. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane looked nervous. “You, uh, you wanna do me first?”<br/>
</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/>
Ryan smirked. “Sure, Madej, I’ll ‘<em>do you first</em>.’” Shane rolled his eyes and sat on the bed, patiently holding out an arm. Ryan quickly poked Shane, drawing up several vials of blood before removing the needle, replacing it with gauze and tape. Ryan held up the swab. “What the hell do they want us to swab? I mean, I guess this is usually what they use for the respiratory pathogen panel, so maybe they want us to do that?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane grimaced. “Just get it over with quickly.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grinned, peeling open the wrapper to carefully pull out the long swab. “Tilt your head back,” he murmured to Shane, gently grasping his chin in one hand. Shane closed his eyes and immediately tried to jerk back as Ryan jammed the swab up his nose. Ryan just tightened his grip on Shane’s chin, continuing. Finally, it was over. Shane sneezed violently, rubbing at his watering eyes. Ryan had his lips pressed together, trying not to smile. “Okay, big guy, my turn.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When Ryan looked at Shane, holding his arm out expectantly, Shane winced, looking nervous. When he made no move, Ryan slowly lowered his arm, staring at Shane. “Wait, hold up…are you afraid to stick me?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane just swallowed in response, remaining silent. Ryan had a look of dawning realization, quickly becoming gleeful. “Wait, hold the fuck up, have you <em>never done this before</em>??”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When Shane pointedly looked away, Ryan fell back onto the bed, laughing. “Oh my god, is the big, serious doctor <em>scared </em>of a little <em>blood</em>?” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Fuck off,” Shane huffed, smiling reluctantly. “Look, I did it, like, once in med school. I readily admit that I don’t know how to do this shit, and I defer to the professionals.” He looked at Ryan pointedly.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grinned and rolled his eyes. “Fine, I’ll do it myself. Isn’t the first time, probably won’t be the last.” He winked at Shane.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Once they had both collected samples, they were again stuck with nothing to do. Eventually, they ended up piled in bed together, watching the Price is Right on the tiny hospital TV. After a couple of hours even Ryan, who had started out yelling passionately at the TV, was growing bored.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan muted the TV and rolled onto his side, facing Shane. Shane cleared his throat, looking nervous under the sudden scrutiny.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Have you heard about the ghost in the Murphy Building?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane started to laugh, huffing out, “Bud, did you just ask if—“ </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane was interrupted by three quick knocks on the door.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan clambered to his feet quickly, jogging across the room. “Uh, come in?” He called uncertainly. </span>
  <span class="s1">The door swung open and TJ quickly walked in, closing the door behind him. </span>
  <span class="s1">“Uhhhh, Teej, it’s great to see you, but—“ Ryan began, looking nervous as he took a few quick steps back from TJ.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“But what the fuck are you doing here?” Shane finished, gazing at TJ in disbelief.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ looked around nervously. “I mean, first, I just wanted to make sure you were still alive…and I also brought your phone charger, Ry—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Oh my god, I could kiss you.” Ryan dove forward to grab the charger from TJ.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted and TJ continued, pitching his voice lower. “I just wanted to warn you guys that things are getting kinda weird…” TJ looked around nervously, stepping closer. “Devon said she’s seen a CDC quarantine before, and it wasn’t like this…like, the whole hospital is swarming with military guys? And when Devon talked to management, she said it sounded like they had no idea what’s happening. Also, I think there’s been a total media blackout about all of this, like it’s been two days, and nobody’s reported anything…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan looked torn between intrigue and fear. Intrigue clearly won, as he began to speak excitedly. “Holy shit, do you have any idea what this means? Like, this is totally some sort of apocalyptic outbreak or some sort of government conspiracy, like—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You sound way too excited about those horrific options,” Shane interjected, but he looked amused.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Dude, I’m being super serious right now.” Ryan frowned up at Shane.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Anyways,” TJ cut in before they could continue. “My point is that you guys need to watch your backs. This whole situation is fucked. Just…” TJ paused, looking at Ryan intently. “Just be careful, Ry, okay?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan nodded mutely, giving TJ a small smile. Shane sighed and walked over to the window, watching absently as birds flitted past. As soon as Shane’s back was turned, TJ broke into a toothy grin, raising his eyebrows at Ryan. He nodded towards Shane and nodded back at Ryan suggestively. Ryan felt himself flush hotly and grimaced at TJ. “Alright, alright, get outta here, Teej. And stay safe, dude.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When TJ was gone, Shane turned back around to face Ryan. He still looked fairly unconcerned, and Ryan frowned at him pointedly. “Okay, big guy, you can’t honestly say at this point that there isn’t something weird going on.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I can, and I will,” Shane retorted. “Honestly, I don’t think anything ‘weird’ is going on. I mean, aside from our local health department overreacting and our country being a military state, there really doesn’t seem to be anything off.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan just gaped at Shane for a few moments before taking in a deep breath, blowing it out forcefully. “Fine.” He walked over to the bed, stretching out on it and patting the space next to him. “Wanna watch some SVU?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane grinned, plopping down next to Ryan. “Hell yeah.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm rapidly realizing that writing this is some sort of strange catharsis to cope with being a nurse during a pandemic lmao</p><p>Leave me some love spooky babes &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I just wanna post another chapter before I fall off the map with work the next few days! </p><p>Bear with me, things will start to pick up next chapter!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane woke up slowly. He was warm and comfortable, and for a moment, he thought he was at home, snuggled up with his cat. His mind slowly took stock, pulling pieces together. Suddenly, it all came rushing back, and Shane felt his stomach swoop uncomfortably. He was in the hospital for the third day in a row, waking up in a patient bed, wrapped around Ryan. He felt his face heating with embarrassment as he slowly extricated himself. Ryan’s eyes flew open, sleepy and dazed. Ryan seemed unperturbed, smiling before rolling over and curling deeper into the stiff hospital blankets. Shane sighed, standing up fully to stretch.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Mmmm, any news?” Ryan’s voice was hoarse with sleep.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane frowned as he rifled through their food, looking for a suitable breakfast. “Nothing yet, little guy.” He could hear Ryan huff out a breath in response. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan sat up in bed, his hair comically messy, sticking up in great tufts. “What’s on the menu this morning, chef?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted. “Well, today you can choose between canned peaches and, uh, the biggest can of refried beans I’ve ever seen…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grimaced as he rolled out of bed. “Well, canned peaches it is, I guess.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan and Shane sat on the edge of the bed, the morning news playing softly on the TV, eating canned peaches with their hands. Shane stuck his hand into the syrup, making a face at the texture as he dug out a peach slice. “You know this is, like, super unhygienic, right? Like, if we didn’t have the plague before, we’re gonna have it now.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan huffed out a laugh. “Dude, we’re not gonna get the <em>plague </em>from sharing some peaches.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane grinned, opening his mouth to retort, when someone knocked on the door, hard. Ryan and Shane glanced at each other before Ryan got up to answer it, wiping peach nectar on his scrub pants.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan cracked the door, and Shane could hear a male voice talking, muffled. Ryan opened the door fully and a man in a hazmat suit slowly stepped in.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m Dr. Elias Mendez, with the CDC. I need to ask you two a few questions.” The man’s voice was deep and muffled, and Shane muted the TV before nodding.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan walked cautiously around the man to stand next to the bed where Shane was sitting. Elias spoke, clearly reciting questions from memory. “Have either of you experienced any chills or diaphoresis?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Nope,” Ryan shook his head. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Elias remained silent, looking pointedly at Shane, who sighed before responding, “No, no signs of fever, no sweating…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Satisfied, Elias continued, “Have either of you experienced any hematuria or bloody stools?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Nope, neither of us,” Shane glanced at Ryan, who shook his head.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Have either of you experienced any nausea or vomiting?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We will if you don’t get us something other than canned beans to eat,” Shane replied darkly. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan shoved his shoulder, before answering, “No. No GI problems.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Elias ignored Shane’s comment, continuing, “Finally, have either of you experienced any emotional lability or lapses in memory?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“No,” Shane answered firmly before continuing quickly, “What’s going on out there? How long are they planning on holding us here? Has anything come back on our blood samples?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Elias gave what felt like another automated response as he turned to leave. “We have no information to share at this time. We will contact you with further instructions, please remain in this room.” Before Shane could respond, he was gone.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane stood up, running a hand through his hair. “Ugh, how long are we gonna be stuck here?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grimaced. “Look, big guy, I know this isn’t exactly ideal—“ Shane snorted, and Ryan frowned at him. “But there’s not much we can do about it at this point. I know it sucks, but we just gotta wait it out, I’m sure they’re doing their best.” Ryan’s nervous expression belied his firm, calming voice.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane sighed, looking at Ryan for a long moment. “Alright. I know you’re right, I’m just sick of being stuck here…” Shane glanced down at himself. His button-down shirt and khakis were sadly rumpled. Shane looked back up at Ryan with a grimace. “I desperately need a shower and some new clothes.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan nodded emphatically. “Dude, same, these scrubs are disgusting. We’ve got a shower in here, why don’t you shower and I’ll try to get us some hospital scrubs or something.” Ryan picked up his phone, texting intently as Shane closed himself in the tiny bathroom.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan threw himself down on the bed, picking up the remote to scroll through channels idly. A few minutes later, a quick knock came at the door. Grinning, Ryan strode over to the door, swinging it open to reveal TJ, clutching a pile of light blue hospital scrubs, sporting a magnificent black eye.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Dude, what the hell happened??” Ryan stared at TJ as he walked in. Besides the blooming bruise over his eye, his arms were clearly bruised, his scrubs rumpled. He looked exhausted.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ grimaced at Ryan once he had closed the door. “Got into it with some military goons.” His reply was short.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan looked appalled. “Dude, what the fuck, what did you do?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After setting the scrubs on the bed, TJ rolled his eyes at Ryan. “Ry, you know me, am I the kinda guy to go picking fights with the military police? I stepped in when a couple guys were harassing Devon…she was trying to get more supplies and staffing for our floor ‘cause we’re running on fumes at this point. One of those assholes started pushing her around, so I punched the guy…” TJ shrugged. “Then they beat the shit outta me.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan was staring at TJ in disbelief, silent for a long moment. “Teej, you gotta report them. Like, isn’t there someone from the CDC you could report them to?”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>TJ’s expression pulled taut. “Ryan, it’s gotten ugly out there. I’m not the only person to get pushed around by those guys. I don’t think the CDC cares.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane poked his head out the bathroom door at this point, interrupting, “Hey, guys, anyone got some clothes that don’t smell like— <em>jesus.</em>” Shane caught sight of TJ’s face as he turned. “What the hell happened?” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It’s a long story,” TJ said wearily, grabbing some scrubs off the bed to throw at Shane. Shane stared for a moment longer before retreating back into the bathroom to dress.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ turned to face Ryan again. “I should go. They’re keeping pretty close tabs on people, I don’t wanna cause any problems for Devon.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan nodded, still looking worried. “Teej, just…take care of yourself, yeah? And let me know if you hear anything about what’s going on.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As he made for the door, TJ nodded. “You too. Both of you, just…stay safe.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Once TJ left, Ryan switched places with Shane, taking a quick, perfunctory shower, before pulling on scrubs that were definitely too long. Ryan rolled up the cuffs of the pants with a huff, tying the drawstring tight. Shane started laughing as Ryan stepped out. “You look like a little kid—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Oh, hardy har, Madej, you’re hilarious, really.” Ryan rolled his eyes as he came to join Shane on the bed. He cleared his throat, looking up at Shane. “So, what’s on the schedule for today?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted. “Well, the Price is Right is on until—“</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>“Dude, as much as I love daytime TV, we’ve gotta come up with something else to do.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What’re you suggesting?” Shane glanced at Ryan, who shrugged in response. They sat in silence for several minutes, Ryan fiddling with his phone, Shane staring out the window, while the Price is Right played softly in the background. Finally, Ryan snatched the remote from Shane’s lap, clicking through channels.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Sick of Bob Barker?” Shane quirked a smile at Ryan.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan turned to Shane, expression intent. “I will never be sick of Bob Barker.” He turned to the TV again. “I’m sick of game shows.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Anyone ever tell you you’re a weird guy, Bergara?” Shane asked.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan gasped as he switched to an old movie channel playing Godzilla, settling back to watch.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I think that’s my answer,” Shane grinned, leaning back.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Several minutes passed in companionable silence as they watched the movie. Seemingly out of nowhere, Ryan turned to Shane. “I have a friend who swears they saw Bigfoot.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane let out a startled huff of laughter. “Wait, you have a friend who—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“She saw Bigfoot while she was hiking in Appalachia!” Ryan looked incredibly earnest, and Shane almost felt bad laughing.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Your friend probably just saw a bear.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“A bear walking on its hind legs?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane rolled his eyes. “You do know that bears can stand up on their hind legs, right?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“But walking? When have you ever seen a bear <em>walk </em>on its hind legs?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Ry, I dunno that much about bears, but trust me, there’s no such thing as—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Okay, but there’s totally evidence of a bigger pattern, like it’s not just Bigfoot! Like, how do you explain the Sasquatch sightings? Or the skunk ape?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“The <em>what—</em>“ Shane struggled to speak around his laughter.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grinned reluctantly. “The skunk ape. People also call it the stink ape, the cabbage a—“</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>“<em>Jesus</em>,” Shane wheezed. “Ryan,” he turned to face Ryan, his face flushed from laughing. “Ryan, please tell me that you know this stuff isn’t real. Like, it’s important to me that you understand that these stories aren’t real.“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan flushed, crossing his arms over his chest, defiant. “I don’t know that.” Shane opened his mouth to protest and Ryan held up a hand. “And neither do you! You don’t have any proof that—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“<em>I </em>don’t have proof??” Shane was still grinning.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan ignored him, continuing, “You don’t have proof they don’t exist! It’s entirely possible that there’s some sort of species out there that we don’t know about! ‘You don’t know what you don’t know’…y’know?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted. “I’m sure there’s a lot I don’t know, but what I <em>do </em>know is that there’s not some massive humanoid monkey species roaming the rural US.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan looked ready to argue again, but Shane stood up, derailing the debate. “You want some lunch?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan sighed and nodded.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p3">
  <span class="s1">——————</span>
</p><p class="p4"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Later that night, Shane woke up with a start to the sound of muffled screaming. The room was still pitch black, and Shane felt his heart pounding for a moment in the silence. A moment later, the screams resumed, followed by gruff male voices. Shane strained his ears, trying to make out words, but the sounds moved quickly away. Shane lay in the dark, feeling uncharacteristically nervous for a few minutes. As the silence stretched, he felt himself quickly drifting back to sleep, comforted by the sound of Ryan’s deep, even breathing.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When Shane woke up considerably later, sunlight was streaming into the room, and Ryan was already scrolling through his phone, pressed up against Shane’s side. As Shane slowly woke up, he remembered the noises he’d heard during the night. He was well on his way to convincing himself it had been a dream when Ryan gave him a tired smile, saying quietly, “Did you hear it too?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane sighed, taking comfort in the warm weight of Ryan next to him. “Yeah, I heard it…I kinda thought I’d been dreaming.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan shook his head, grimacing. “Nope, someone was definitely screaming in the hall last night.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Their fourth day started out much the same as the previous day. Once Shane had disentangled himself from Ryan, they ate canned peaches together in front of the morning news. They both showered, put on their still mostly-clean hospital scrubs, and settled in to watch some nature show Shane had chosen. It was late morning and Ryan was dozing lightly on Shane’s shoulder when a quick, gentle knock came from the door.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane gently slid out from underneath Ryan, who was blinking blearily awake. Shane was tense as he cracked open the door, but he immediately relaxed upon seeing Sara.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You gonna let me in, Madej?” She gave him a tired smile as he stumbled back, holding the door open for her.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey, Dr. Rubin,” Ryan greeted her, stretching and standing up. “Any news?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara threw herself down in the recliner, closing her eyes for a moment. Her white coat was wrinkled, and her hair was a frizzy mess.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Sara, have you slept at all?” Shane looked concerned.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">She opened one eye. “A couple hours here and there, but it’s been pretty messed up out there…” Sara sat up, with great effort, looking from Shane to Ryan for a moment, silent. She took a deep breath, her voice quiet. “We need to get you two out of here.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I thought we were being quarantined…” Ryan looked confused. “Did they figure out what happened to Mr. Riley, or…?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara rubbed a hand down her face, sighing. “I have no idea—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan interrupted, eyes wide. “How do you have no idea, how long are they planning on—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey,” Sara interrupted the oncoming rant. “Please, let me talk, I can’t stay long.” Ryan still looked distressed, but he simply nodded in response. Sara continued, “Something isn’t right here. There are all these little things…” Sara trailed off for a moment, taking a deep breath and looking at Shane. “I’ve seen the CDC quarantine people before. Back when I was in residency, we had some guy come in with yellow fever, and we had to call. A couple of doctors showed up, and it was pretty low-key…my point is whatever’s happening here? It’s not normal. It’s not normal to have military guards storm a hospital, beating up nurses.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara paused, and Ryan spoke up timidly, “Have you heard anything about what happened to the guy, Mr. Riley?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara grimaced. “If they know anything, they’ve been refusing to discuss it. That’s another weird thing, normally the CDC docs defer to the attending unless they’re violating CDC guidelines. But even then, it’s supposed to be collaborative. And…there’s one more thing, guys…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">When Sara trailed off again, Shane prompted her, “One more thing?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara nodded, her expression pulling taut, her hands fidgeting nervously. “They told me I wasn’t allowed to tell anyone what I saw—"</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>“Who told you?” Shane interrupted, looking angry, and Ryan threw him an exasperated look.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“The lady in charge, Harriet May.” Sara still looked nervous, now glancing at the door.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Sara, what did you see?” Shane spoke quietly, kneeling down so he was at eye level.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“The guy who died…he tried to attack us in the hallway to the SICU. Like, this guy was paralyzed, had a known history of CIDP, <em>and </em>he had just coded <em>twice</em>, and he threw himself out of bed and grabbed one of the ICU nurses. He was hemorrhaging, bleeding out of his eyes, ears, mouth…and he started coughing blood into her face…Shane, you know I’ve seen some shit, but that was like nothing I’ve ever seen. And the nurse he coughed on? She’s non-responsive, and her coag labs are fucked. They’re probably gonna intubate her in the next couple hours.” By the end of this, Sara’s face was open and distressed.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane was wide-eyed, and Ryan felt his stomach twist as he realized this was the first time he’d seen Shane look frightened. Ryan spoke up first, his words slow as he processed. “So…if that nurse got sick already…and we were exposed before her…?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara cut in, nodding her head at Ryan, “Yeah, I think you guys are in the clear. The SICU nurse started running a temp less than four hours after exposure…As far as I can tell, this thing isn’t airborne.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Droplet?” Shane asked shortly.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara shrugged. “Probably. Definitely contact-based and blood-borne.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane straightened up, standing again. “So, then why are we still here?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara stood up, grimacing. “That’s exactly my point. I don’t know why they’re quarantining the entire hospital…I’ve got a strong feeling they know more than they’re saying.” She headed for the door, her exhaustion clear in her slow steps. “I need to get going, but you guys should find a way out of here. I just…I don’t think it’s safe here.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Sara,” Shane’s voice was quiet, concerned. “What about you? I’m not gonna leave you here.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara gave him a tired smile. “I’ll be okay, you know I can look after myself. I need to make sure my patients are safe before I make a run for it…” She paused looking between Shane and Ryan. “Just don’t trust anyone. Stay safe.” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You too,” Ryan nodded at her, and then she was gone, quickly darting into the hallway.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Silence hung heavy for a long moment, both boys lost in thought. Ryan was the first to speak. “Dude, this is some X-Files shit.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted. “What, are you saying Sara is Mulder?”</span>
</p><p class="p1"><span class="s1"></span><br/><br/>Ryan scoffed. “Absolutely not. I’m Mulder, Sara’s Deep Throat…and you’re Scully.” Ryan finished with a grin.</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane just rolled his eyes. “I want to believe.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Silence fell again for a long moment before Ryan cleared his throat. “So, what now?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane shrugged. “I dunno. I mean, I trust Sara with my life. She’s ridiculously smart and has always had my back…I just don’t know that we’ve reached the point where we need to go on run from the military and the CDC, y’know?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan sat down on the bed with a sigh. “Yeah, I guess…but, like, if we are in the middle of some sort of outbreak scenario, we might be better off jumping ship sooner, rather than later.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane shook his head as he sat next to Ryan. “From the sound of it, we should be more concerned about the military…but either way, I’d rather not throw away my career before it’s started because we got a little spooked.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan grimaced as he turned on the TV, glancing up at Shane. “Alright, big guy, let’s give it one more night. But if we haven’t heard anything tomorrow, I vote we stage a coup.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted. “Who said anything about staging a coup, I thought we were just planning on running.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Where’s the fun in that?” Ryan grinned, settling on an interior design show. Shane sighed, rolling his eyes as he settled back to watch.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Got the obligatory X-files reference and a skunk ape reference, which, let's be real, I'll probably throw that stinky ape into every fic I write because it's so fucking funny.</p><p>Leave me some love!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Here's the next one folks!</p><p>Leave me some love &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The rest of the fourth day passed in a blur of daytime TV, canned beans, and arguments over cryptids. It was dark by the time the boys settled in to sleep, both scrolling through their phones in the dark. Ryan eventually stuck his phone under the pillow, rolling onto his stomach, his breaths leveling out as he fell asleep. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane remained awake for another hour, scrolling absently through the news. He was just setting his phone on the bedside table when he heard a resounding <em>thump </em>outside their door. Shane groaned quietly, dragging himself out of bed. Distantly, he heard shuffling sounds in the hallway as he crossed the short distance to the door. When he opened the door, however, the hallway was empty. He felt his stomach flip as he looked at the floor, seeing a fresh, red smear of blood trailing down the hallway in either direction. Instinctively, he remained quiet as he stepped into the hallway, straining his ears to hear anything. The hospital was utterly silent. The lack of sound did little to quiet Shane’s nerves, and he felt his heart pounding as he quickly stepped back into their little room, closing the door behind him.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Shane?” Ryan’s voice was muffled in the pillow, sleepy. “What’s going on?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I just thought I heard something…” Shane ran a hand through his hair as he walked back to the bed. “It’s fine, Ry, go back to sleep.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan didn’t respond, and Shane could hear his breathing slow again as he quickly fell back asleep. Shane, however, remained awake for what felt like hours. He lay in the dark, trying to slow his thoughts, feeling annoyed at how nervous he felt. Eventually, exhaustion took over, and he dozed off.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane woke with a start what felt like moments later. He squinted as light was cast into their dark room from the open door. He fumbled for his glasses, feeling Ryan stir beside him. Shane squinted at the open doorway, feeling a wash of relief at the sight of TJ. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Teej?” Ryan was sleepy, confused. “What’s going on?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ strode into the dark room, followed by a woman with short, messy blond hair pulled into a ponytail. They were both wearing isolation gowns, masks, and face shields. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Devon?” Ryan sat up fully, jamming his glasses onto his face. His tired confusion was quickly pulling taut into concern.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We’re getting out of here,” Devon said shortly. She deposited a clear plastic bag on the foot of the bed, as TJ flicked on some low lights.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“What?” Shane stared at them. He felt his heart rate pick up as he realized TJ’s gown was smeared with drying blood.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We’re leaving,” TJ said, his expression grim. “Now.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>“We got all the isolation gear we could find on the floor. Get dressed, I’ll get my car and pick you guys up on the 3rd floor of the West lot.” Devon left.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Wait, wait, hold up, I can’t just <em>leave</em>—“ Shane began to interject, and Ryan interrupted him.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Dude, TJ, what about the patients? Like I get things are kinda sketchy, but we can’t just leave—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We took care of it,” TJ said firmly as he reached into the bag, pulling out another gown. As he switched out gowns, he continued, “Mark took anyone who could walk out the service entrance in the basement. We got all the others into wheelchairs and ditched them at the entrance by the pharmacy.” Ryan looked like he was about to protest, and TJ held up a hand. “Devon put in a call to a friend at AMR to transport people to other hospitals.” TJ shrugged. “There’s not much else we can do for them. They’re safer getting out of here.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan dug in the bag and began to pull on a yellow gown and gloves, but Shane stood still, disbelieving. “You guys, we can’t just leave…like, we may not know exactly what—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ interrupted. “You haven’t seen what’s happening out there. Staff and patients are getting dragged away by armed guards. People are getting sick…like, sick like I’ve never seen in my life. We passed two bodies in the hallway on the way here. This place is turning into a fucking blood bath, and we need to bail.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane looked like he was about to protest, but Ryan spoke first. “Look, Shane, I trust these guys. I know they wouldn’t leave the hospital if they didn’t have to. You heard Sara earlier, we need to get out of here. I’m going with them, and I’m not leaving you here.” Ryan shoved a gown at Shane, who took it without protest.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane watched as Ryan put on a mask and finally sighed, wriggling into his isolation gown. Once Ryan was dressed, he grabbed the now-empty plastic bag and began shoving their food into it. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Ry, why the hell are you packing that garbage?” Shane grimaced at the sight of the cheap refried beans they’d been living off.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Dude, we don’t know how serious this shit is gonna get. We need to be ready for a full-blown 28 Days Later scenario here…like, even if there isn’t some horrific outbreak, I’m sure the CDC isn’t gonna be thrilled we’re breaking out of quarantine…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane was silent for a moment as he pulled on his mask and shield. He turned to face Ryan, who was clearly jittery with nerves. “If I come with you, we’re taking Sara.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan nodded, as TJ responded shortly. “We have room in the car.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane lifted his gown to grab his phone out of his pocket. “I’m calling her, gimme a sec…” Shane was silent as the phone rang for a moment, finally answering, “Sara, you okay?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara’s voice was fake over the phone, overly bright. “Dr. Madej, what can I do for you?”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>Shane paused, uncertain for a moment. Realization dawned quickly, and he continued, “Sara, listen. I know you’re not alone, but we’re getting out. You gotta come meet us. We’ll be on the 3rd floor of the West lot in less than 10 minutes.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’ll look into it, Dr. Madej, thanks for calling!” Sara laughed nervously before the phone went dead. Shane frowned, clearly worried. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Even without being able to see his face, Ryan read the tense lines of Shane’s body, grabbing his hand for a moment. “She’ll be okay. She can take care of herself.” Ryan squeezed once before letting go and grabbing the bag of food. Shane stared after him for a moment before following into the hallway.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As they walked through the halls, quickly and quietly, Shane and Ryan quickly realized something was horribly wrong in the hospital.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It’s way too quiet in here,” Shane said lowly to Ryan, whose eyes were wide and terrified. While the hospital was normally bustling at all hours, the halls were deserted and silent. The hallways and rooms they passed were dirty and desolate, piles of linens and trash littered in corners. Every so often, they’d pass a smear of blood on the walls and floors. Ryan was breathing rapidly, his breath fogging both his glasses and his face shield until he stopped, reaching up to wipe his shield. Shane grabbed his wrist before he could reach his face, speaking quietly, “Don’t tempt fate by breaking PPE. Try to take deep, even breaths through your nose, and hold my hand until you can see again.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan nodded silently in response, clutching Shane’s hand in a surely painful grip. Shane, however, just continued quickly after TJ, carefully guiding Ryan around discarded carts and wheelchairs. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ paused to speak quietly, “We’re almost there. We just gotta make it through the atrium to the center elevators. We’d probably be safest going to the 2nd—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey!” The three looked around frantically at the loud male voice. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ caught sight of a man in dark fatigues, riot gear covering his face. He was holding a rifle, coming out of a door down the hall. “RUN!” TJ yelled, figuring there was no point remaining quiet. He took off at a sprint, Shane dragging Ryan behind them. Despite being unable to see, Ryan kept up surprisingly well. Shane glanced over his shoulder, about to throw back a quip about Ryan being a jock, when he stopped short, Ryan stumbling into him. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Several feet behind them, the military guard was struggling desperately with a woman wearing light pink scrubs, coated in blood. Her hair was filthy, matted down with blood, and her scrubs were torn. She was making horrific, animal noises, snarling as she ripped at the guard’s mask, blood spraying from her mouth. The guard’s grunts turned into faint noises of terror as his helmet flew off and he stumbled back into the wall, the woman lunging for his face.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Go, go, go, c’mon you idiots,” TJ grabbed at Shane, yanking him back into motion. Ryan, whose face shield had cleared in time to see the horrific scene behind them, was now panting, terrified, his shield quickly fogging again.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">TJ led them into a stairwell, all three jumping at the sight of a mauled CDC doctor laying dead on the stairs, his hazmat suit shredded. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Is that a fucking body?” Ryan’s voice was high and taut, distressed. “Jesus, they tore right through his suit, why are we even wearing this shit?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I told you guys,” TJ replied grimly, stepping gingerly over the dead man as he ascended the flight of stairs. Shane and Ryan followed carefully, and soon they were running down another hallway, past two more bodies, and finally, they burst through a door into the parking garage. Devon was waiting in a white sedan, her windows rolled down. TJ immediately threw himself into the passenger seat.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane let go of Ryan’s hand to look around. “Sara?” He called tentatively, voice echoing in the garage. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Devon shushed him through the open window of her car. “Keep it down! There’s like a dozen military assholes down by the entrance!”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>“How’re we gonna get past them?” Ryan asked nervously.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Devon frowned. “Honestly, I’m still working that out…my only options so far are drive real fast, make Molotov cocktails out of medical supplies—”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Devon was cut off by a shrill alarm echoing from the hospital. A moment later, Sara was sprinting out to meet them, wearing a torn white coat and a PAPR. As soon as she caught sight of them, she was grinning, pulling off the large, white hood.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Sara, did you just pull the fire alarm?” Shane stared at her, his face twisting slowly into a stupid grin.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I figured it might help get some people out of here…also, it’s a nice distraction.”</span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1"><br/><br/>Devon looked at them impatiently, “Okay, c’mon kids, get in, we gotta go.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Right on cue, a pair of military guards and a man in a hazmat suit burst into the parking garage. Shane, Ryan, and Sara piled into the back of the car, and Devon took off, leaving muffled shouts behind them. She took the corners and ramps of the garage dangerously fast, building up speed to ram through the bar blocking the entrance. The world was awash in the gray light of early dawn, casting gentle shadows through the parking lot.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">As Devon sped towards the road, they passed massive white tents and armored trucks. The few guards they passed seemed overwhelmed with the outflow of people from the hospital. Ryan spun around in his seat to watch in the rear window as fighting broke out between staff, patients, armed guards…Ryan felt his chest clench, fighting a wave of nausea at the sight of two people in scrubs, blood pouring down their faces, leaping into the fray like animals. And then, thankfully, they were free, speeding down the road.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p3">
  <span class="s1">——————</span>
</p><p class="p4"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The first few minutes they drove, the city streets were shockingly quiet. The normalcy of people walking dogs and driving to work made the terror they left behind feel unreal, like the remnants of a nightmare. Shane, who was squished in between Ryan and Sara, was the first to speak, still muffled behind his mask and shield. “What now?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“First, we gotta ditch the isolation gear and clean out this car,” Devon replied. “Anyone know a good self-service car wash around here?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I think there’s one over on Geary, not far from here,” Ryan said, his voice still pitched up with nerves.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“That place is a shithole,” TJ commented cheerfully.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Devon snorted. “Honestly, that’s better for us if we’re gonna show up dressed like this.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Shouldn’t we be contacting someone about the shit we just saw?” Shane sounded incredulous.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara shook her head, turning to face him. “Who are we gonna call? The CDC already knows, the military already knows…I mean, we could try contacting local news stations or local government, but I have a bad feeling this situation is gonna catch a lot of attention pretty quickly…”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I need to call my family,” Ryan said shortly, pulling out his phone.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“For once, I’m glad my family lives across the country,” Devon commented, turning on the radio quietly, flipping over to a news station.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan was speaking urgently to his brother, “No, Jake, listen to me…I’ve never been more serious in my life. There was some sort of fucked up outbreak at the hospital. You need to pick up mom and dad and get out of the city. Grab whatever food you can, grab some medical supplies, and get out…dude, I’m serious…” Ryan’s voice was taut and distressed. “Okay. Yeah, you too, dude. Love you.” Ryan hung up the phone, leaning back in his seat, eyes closed.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey, Ry, they’ll be okay,” Shane said quietly. “They’ve got time.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After a few minutes, Devon was pulling into a dirty, deserted car wash. “Okay, kids, get out of your gear, ditch it in that trash can,” Devon pointed at a solitary trash can near the hoses. “Then we’ll wash up, use the alcohol I brought, wash the car, and get out of here.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Silently, the group climbed out, carefully stripping off isolation gear, while Devon slid some quarters in the machine. They took turns having their arms sprayed down with the hose, trying not to soak their clothes. Once Devon had sprayed everyone down, she turned to the car, spraying the exterior before pulling out a can of bleach wipes to clean the interior. Dawn was well on its way by the time they had finished, the gentle golden sunlight surreal after spending days trapped inside.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Without much conversation, the group piled back into the car, as Devon walked over to the trashcan. She fiddled with something for a moment, her back to the car. She turned and quickly jogged back to the car, the trash can quickly catching fire behind her. “Dude,” Ryan grinned at her as she climbed into the driver’s seat. “You’re a total badass, you know that?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I know,” Devon smiled in the rearview mirror as she pulled the car back onto the road.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“So, now what, do we just go home or—“ Shane fell silent as an alarm began to blare on the radio. Devon quickly turned it up.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A mechanical male voice began to speak, “Attention. This is the emergency broadcast system. This message will repeat. The city of San Francisco is on emergency lockdown, effective immediately. Please stay indoors, seek shelter, and await further instructions…” The message began to repeat, and Devon turned it down.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The car remained silent for a long moment, Ryan breaking it first. “We’re not just gonna hide indoors, right? Like, we need to get out of the city.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane grimaced at him. “We might be better off just going home and waiting for this to blow over. If we—“</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“‘<em>Blow over’</em>?” Ryan stared at Shane in disbelief. “Dude, you saw how fucked up the hospital was, this isn’t just gonna <em>blow over, </em>we need to get supplies and get out!”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara sighed, grabbing Shane’s hand. “Shane, he’s right. We’re better off overreacting, rather than under-reacting. We’re in the middle of a horrific outbreak, and it’s a miracle none of us was infected. We’ll be safer if we can get somewhere remote.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane frowned stiffly. “I’m not leaving my cat.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">“How’s your apartment in terms of supplies?” Devon spoke up, glancing in the rearview mirror. “Do you have enough food and medical supplies for five people?”</span><br/><br/>Shane snorted. “Definitely not…but there’s a Target around the corner from my place. I’m also close to the 80. We can take that into Oakland, head NorthEast towards Nevada.”</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Should be, what, like a four-hour drive to get out of state?” TJ asked, glancing back. Ryan nodded.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Lead the way, Dr. Madej,” Devon grinned back at him.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane directed Devon through city streets that were quickly emptying as people heard the emergency lockdown order. Ryan could see some people frantically packing their cars, others still leaving for work, but the city was eerily quiet. Devon parked the car on a city street, turning around to face the back. “Okay, Madej, you take Ryan to get your cat. If you bring anything, pack light, this isn’t much space for five people…the rest of you are with me. Grab nonperishable food, medical supplies, clothes…any camping gear you think could be useful. We’ll meet back here in 30 minutes.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Before leaving the car, Shane looked at Sara, quietly asking, “Are we really doing this?” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Sara gave him a tired smile. “What, are we really ditching our entire lives to escape a horrific outbreak? Apparently, that’s what’s on the menu for today.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted, clambering out of the car, leading Ryan down the street towards his apartment. “This is so surreal,” Ryan murmured, glancing up at Shane.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane sighed in response. “Yeah, I know…” He looked at Ryan, considering, for a long moment. “You’re taking this all surprisingly well.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan shrugged, grinning ruefully. “I’ve watched a lot of zombie flicks. I feel like I’ve been preparing for this my whole life.” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane snorted, unlocking the front door of a large, brick apartment building. When they entered his apartment, Ryan immediately threw himself onto the leather couch, cooing as Shane’s orange tabby crawled into his lap, purring. Shane watched them for a moment, smiling, bemused. “He likes you,” he commented to Ryan, finally moving, grabbing a canvas bag and shoving cat food into it.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Are you literally just bringing supplies for your cat?” Ryan watched Shane, his expression fond.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane shrugged, looking defensive. “We don’t have much room…I’d rather make sure Obi is taken care of than worry about my clothes or whatever…However, I am gonna change before we leave. You want something other than scrubs to wear?”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“God, yes, please,” Ryan sounded relieved.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Several minutes later, they walked out of the apartment, Shane clutching a heavy bag, Ryan carefully holding the cat. The others were already waiting by the car, dressed in new clothes. TJ began to laugh as he caught sight of Ryan, who was wearing chinos rolled up several times and a t-shirt that was massive on him. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Fuck off,” Ryan huffed at TJ, grinning reluctantly.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“He looks like a little kid playing dress-up, right?” Shane commented gleefully.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You guys are the worst,” Ryan squinted at them for a moment before throwing himself into the car, still clutching Obi. The others followed suit, climbing into the car, Ryan sandwiched in between Sara and Shane.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“That cat’s not gonna throw up in my car, is he?” Devon gave Shane a dark look in the rearview mirror.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Nah, he’s like a little dog, he loves car rides,” Shane grinned as he reached over to scratch behind Obi’s ears. Devon pulled the car onto the road, heading for the Bay Bridge. As they drew close to the on-ramp for the 80, a loud, blaring siren crackled to life, wailing throughout the city. The sound of the siren was sobering, and Ryan could feel Shane and Sara tense beside him. Devon looked grim as she stepped on the gas. Their route to the 80 was taking them closer to UCSF, and Shane made a strangled noise as he looked out the window.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A man in a suit was running down the street, sprinting away from two men in hospital gowns. They were both coated in blood, and one of the men had what was clearly a broken arm, the bone protruding grotesquely at his shoulder. He seemed unperturbed, his face twisted into a snarl as he ran after the man.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“We gotta help him,” Ryan commented faintly, his expression distraught.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Shane put a hand on Ryan’s, comforting. “We need to get out of here. We can’t stop and help every person we see.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan turned to look out the rear window as they passed the horrific scene. “Then what’s the point of us? What kind of nurse am I, if I just let people suffer and die when I could help?”</span>
</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Ry,” Shane spoke softly, squeezing his hand. Ryan turned to look at him, his expression taut. “We can’t save everyone. Even at work, you know we can’t save everyone. And we can’t help anyone if we’re dead.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Ryan just grimaced in response, looking forward resolutely. He gave Shane’s hand a quick squeeze in response, though.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Soon, they were speeding across the Bay Bridge, which was eerily empty. TJ huffed out a sigh of relief as they hit Oakland, Devon still speeding dangerously down the highway, which was quickly becoming more congested with traffic. As sunlight streamed through the car, Ryan felt himself drifting off to sleep, and soon he and Shane were both fast asleep as they sped towards the state line.</span>
</p>
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